Indiana University Southeast announces tuition discount for Kentucky residents; direct admissions for high school seniors

Indiana University Southeast has recently announced new initiatives that will make a college education more accessible to more students. Beginning with the Fall 2025 semester, residents of the state of Kentucky will receive a tuition discount at Indiana University Southeast via the Indiana Partner Program. Additionally, high school seniors from certain school districts will be eligible for direct admission into Indiana University Southeast, cutting down on the time and stress that often comes along with filling out college applications.

According to an article on Indiana University Southeast’s website explaining the tuition discount for Kentucky residents, Dr. Debbie Ford, who serves as the Chancellor of IU Southeast, was quoted as saying of the new partner program, “At Indiana University Southeast, we take pride in transforming lives by providing a career-focused education that allows students to pursue their degrees while still managing everyday expenses. More than half of our students graduate debt-free, and with the new Indiana Partner Program, even more students and families will gain access to our nationally recognized programs—opening doors to life-changing opportunities.”

To be eligible to take advantage of the tuition discount, the student must be a resident of Kentucky, Illinois, or Michigan, be admitted into Indiana University Southeast as a degree-seeking undergraduate or graduate student, and be enrolled in an on-campus degree-seeking program. The student may be a part-time or full-time student. Students who qualify will see an average of 57% savings from the standard out-of-state tuition.

This new program will grant tuition discounts to Kentucky residents who are not already included in a reciprocal agreement with the Indiana and Kentucky Commissions on Higher Education, which grants in-state tuition to individuals from the counties of Jefferson, Bullitt, Henry, Meade, Oldham, Shelby, Trimble, and Spencer.

Indiana Partner states will include as of Fall 2025 Kentucky, Illinois, and Michigan. Additionally, students coming from Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, and Wisconsin qualify for a similar tuition discount called the Midwest Student Exchange Program.

In addition to this initiative, the university will also be introducing a direct admissions process in the Fall 2025 semester.

In a separate article on Indiana University Southeast’s website, Dr. Ford is quoted as saying of the new direct admissions process for high school seniors, “Indiana University Southeast is dedicated to the success of our current and future students. With these agreements, we are demystifying the admissions process and making it easier for students to attend college and access life-changing opportunities. This is especially important for first-generation students whose families may be navigating this process for the first time.”

The process will be available for students who will be high school seniors in the fall of 2025 at high schools in Albany, Floyd Central, Borden, Henryville, Clarksville, Corydon Central, South Central, New Washington, Charlestown, Jeffersonville, Silver Creek, and Seymour. These students will be eligible for direct, seamless admission into Indiana University Southeast, provided that they have at least a 2.0 grade point average and are on track to earn an Indiana Core 40 diploma or an equivalent. These students will be able to bypass the lengthy application process and instead fill out a short online form to begin the process of starting at Indiana University Southeast. They will, like all first-year students, be considered for a $2,500 per year scholarship based on their admission to the university.

More school districts are in the process of finalizing agreements with the university, so this direct admissions process will be available for more high schoolers in the future.

For more information about Indiana University Southeast, visit the school’s website.